10 Yoga Poses That Will Completely Boost Your Confidence

Most of use want to be more confident, but few know that regular practice of Yoga can help us to achieve it.

Yoga realigns our posture, helps us to find balance and enables us to constantly keep our center of gravity. In this was we learn to hold our selves in an ultra confident way, just from practicing a little every day.

If you want to improve your posture, stand straighter and give off an air of confidence, then these 10 yoga poses will help you to achieve it!

1. Mountain Pose – Tadasana

Description: Begin by standing with feet together, heels and toes touching. While maintaining a straight back, hold your arms gently to your sides and turn your palms outward. Lift your toes, spreading them out and placing them back down so you create a wide base. Sway, side to side, until you place your weight evenly on all four corners of your feet.

The muscles in your knees and thighs should be contracted, rolling inward to create a widening of the sit bones, and your abdominal muscles should be tightened. Make sure that your shoulders are parallel to your pelvis, lengthen your neck so your crown extends towards the ceiling and your shoulder blades slide down your back. Hold for 30 seconds and relax.

Benefits: The mountain pose is the foundation of all standing poses and once mastered will allow you to progress onwards. It improves your posture and firms the buttocks, thighs and abdomen.

Common postural errors: Wrong alignment or ankles banging against each other. Tips: Practice against a wall first so that you learn how to form a true, straight line. If your ankles are hitting against one another, widen your feet slightly and find your centre of balance again.

Common postural errors: Sinking shoulders down into spine. Tips: Focus on contracting your thighs and lengthening spine to stop shoulders from sinking.

3. Awkward Pose – Utkatasana

Description: Begin in the Mountain Pose, raise your hands forwards and over your head, keeping your hands shoulder width apart or clasped, depending on your preference. Exhale and bend your knees and your upper body forward so that it is at a 45 degree angle in relation to the floor. Maintain a straight back and relax your calf muscles, allowing the weight of your upper body to sink into your pelvis instead, transferring the weight onto your heels. Inhale and straighten you knees while lifting strongly through your arms. Exhale, returning your arms to your side and returning to mountain pose.

Benefits: The Awkward Pose strengthens the lower back and quadriceps, stretching the shoulders, arms and hamstrings.

Common postural errors: Having an arched back. Tips: Try to keep your back as straight as possible by performing the lowering motion with your thighs, knees and hips.

4. Tree Pose – Vrksasana

Description: Begin in mountain pose and bring both hands up, pressed together in a prayer gesture and shifting your weight onto your left foot keeping the inner foot firmly to the ground. Bend your right knee, reach down with your right hand and grasp your right ankle, drawing it up and placing the sole against your inner left groin with toes pointing at the floor. The centre of your pelvis should be directly over the standing foot. Straighten your spine and firmly press your right foot into the inner thigh while resisting with your outer left leg and returning your hands to the prayer position in front of you. Gaze at a fixed point directly in front of you and hold for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Exhale and return to Mountain Pose, repeat again for the opposite leg.

Common postural errors: Misaligning the hip. Tips: You can start by doing this pose against a wall to aid in finding you balance. Keep your hips square and pointing forward.

5. Extended Triangle Pose – ParivrttaTrikonasana

Description: From the Mountain pose, move your feet until they are roughly three feet apart, with your pelvis, chest and head aligned. Inhale and raise both arms straight out to the side, until they’re parallel with the floor, palms facing down. Exhale, and keeping your legs straight, pivot on your heels to turn your left foot all the way to the right and keeping your heels in line with each other.

Lower your torso to the right, as far as is comfortable and keep your arms parallel to the floor. Once your torso is fully extended, drop your arm so that your left hand rests on your ankle and extend your right arm to the ceiling. Extend your arms as far as you can in opposite directions and turn your head to focus on your left thumb. Hold for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Repeat instructions with opposite leg.

Common postural errors: Twisting your hips. Tips: Keep your leading knee centred over your foot and if you feel unbalanced, you can practice with keeping your back heel against a wall.

6. Low Lunge Pose – Anjeneyasana

Description: Step your right foot forwards, aligning your right knee over your heel. Then lower your left knee to the floor, making sure you keep your right knee steady and in the same place. Slide your left foot back along the floor until you can feel a comfortable stretch in your thigh and groin, resting the top of your left foot against the floor. Lift your torso upright while inhaling, sweeping your arms up by your sides until they point at the ceiling. Push your tailbone down toward the floor and lift your pubis up. Tilt your head and gaze upward while reaching toward the ceiling, and hold for 1 minute before moving into the plank pose.

Common postural errors: The knee leans to one side rather than being straight. Tips: If your lowered knee is uncomfortable, place a folded blanket underneath it.

7. Standing Forward Bend – Uttanasana

Description: From the Mountain Pose, exhale and bend forward from your hips, sweeping your arms to the sides, with your palms facing the floor. While lowering your torso, keep your back flat and tuck in your abdominal muscles to lengthen your spine. Keep folding your torso forwards until they are parallel to your legs (Or as close as you can get). Grasp the back of your ankles and contract your thighs to keep your knees as straight as possible.

Common postural errors: Rolling the spine. Tips: If you find this difficult, then bend your knees as you bring your torso forward, and then straighten on each exhale afterwards.

8. Cobra Pose – Bhujangasana

Description: From a prone position, place your palms under your shoulders and legs flat to the floor. On inhalation slowly raise your chest up, bending backwards as much as possible and hold for 10-15 seconds. On exhalation bring your body back down to the prone position. Repeat 5 times, taking a 15 second break between each hold.

Benefits: Strengthen the spine, stretches the chest, shoulders, and abdomen, firms the buttocks, betters posture and relieves stress and fatigue.

Common postural errors: Overarching the neck and lower back. Tips: Keep your gaze directed down at the floor and focus on bringing movement into the area between the shoulder blades.

9. Hero Pose – Virasana

Description: Begin by kneeling, with your thighs perpendicular to the floor and your feet angled slightly wider than your hips. Bring your knees together while pushing your feet into the floor. Lean forward, exhale and sink back so that you are sitting with your buttocks to the floor, in between your heels. Lift your chest and press your shoulders back and down, lengthening your tailbone. Rest your hands, palm down on your thighs, pulling in your abdominals and hold for 30 seconds to one minute.

Benefits: The Hero Pose stretches thighs, hips and ankles and provides a counterbalance to hip-opening postures.

Common postural errors: Lifting shoulders, turning the soles out or sitting on the heels. Tips: If you experience pain then place a folded blanket beneath you and point your big toes inward slightly.

10. Upward-Facing Dog Pose – Urdhva Mukha Svanasana

Description: Start by lying in a prone position on the floor. Bend your elbows and place your hands directly beneath the, flat to the floor on either side of you. Separate your legs slightly, extending your toes backwards so the tops of your feet press against the floor. Inhale and push against the floor with your hands and tops of your feet, lifting your torso and hips from the floor. Contract your thighs and tailbone toward your pubis. Continue lifting until your arms are fully extended, creating an arch in your back. Push your shoulders down and lengthen your neck, gazing slightly upwards. Hold for 15-30 seconds and exhale as you lower your self back to a prone position.

Common postural errors: Raising the shoulders or dropping the thighs to the floor. Tips: Make sure your arms and legs are fully elongated to create the full extension, and drop your shoulders while lengthening your neck upwards.

Useful Pages

This website uses cookies to improve your experience and to show you relevant advertising. To find out more, read our updated privacy policy. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our terms. Accept